Snow, Steps, and Stars

 "The sun has risen, the sun has set, and here I am in Texas yet!"

The old Texas saying certainly holds true for our long-awaited trip to the Big Bend region - it was a loooong drive to get out here, and there's still more of Texas even further west than where we are! (602 miles we traveled, another 205 to reach the New Mexico boarder!) 

I'm thankful for the friends/colleagues who've sent me postcards over the past few weeks. <3

We left out the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, making our way thru Kerrville (a one night stopover at the Kerrville KOA Journey) and continued the long drive over to Davis Mountains State Park on Thanksgiving day. 

The route from Kerrville to Fort Davis is nearly a direct shot west on I-10, which made it a very easy drive, but be forewarned: you should fill up in Junction (even if you don't really need to) because there's only one gas station along that entire stretch of I-10 until you get to Fort Stockton.... and they happen to be closed on Turkey Day.

But I suppose at least you could phone a friend, if you needed to!

Also, it's super helpful when you're on those long, long stretches to carry your own bathroom with you! HA!

We drove into the park right at dusk on Thanksgiving and settled into our site - readying ourselves for what was expected to be a cold and snowy night.  Weather services were predicting 2-3 inches overnight so we bundled up, turned on the tank heaters, fired up the heated blankets and woke in the morning to.... nothing.

But that didn't last long!  At 28* outside, once the rain did start, we had snow!

LOTS of snow! (And yes, I was like a little kid, trying to catch the big snowflakes on my tongue!)

The entire park got a dusting of snow in the morning, which shifted us away from our plans of hiking the mountain trails on Friday; we made the best of the day by jumping in the truck and taking off for Alpine, stopping in at nearby Fort Davis first to see the Jeff Davis County courthouse.

Covered in snow, it almost looked like the background to a Hallmark Christmas movie!

We took the snowy roads south down to Alpine, which also happens to be a county seat (Brewster County) so we stopped over by the courthouse to get another picture, snow and all.

From there, we just went a few blocks over to our actual destination, the Museum of The Big Bend. 

They're undergoing construction for a large addition to the exhibit space, but in talking with one of the volunteers, Randy, at the front desk, we both agreed that it was a great thing that the main building, the only one on campus made with natural stones, was going to continue to be utilized.  In fact, the building and museum were dedicated in 1937 by Governor Pat Neff (who you'll remember, set up the initial parks in what would be come the Texas State Park System).

There were a number of interesting and interactive displays taking you thru the region from one era to another (starting with the dinosaur fossils found in the Big Bend region - including a pterodactyl!) 

"According to Indian legend, when the Great Creator made the earth and finished placing the stars in the sky, the birds in the air, and the fish in the sea, there was a large pile of rejected stony material left over. Finished with His job, He threw this into on heap and made the Big Bend." 

It was interesting to see the mock wall of the Tall Rock Shelter Pictographs as RDB and I have plans on the way home from this trip to stop at Seminole Canyon State Park and take a guided tour of another set of pictographs there.

I couldn't help but be impressed by the interior ceiling and roof supports of the building - between the rough hewn rocks on the outside and the curved wooden ceiling inside, the museum reminded me of some of the buildings on my old college campus.

We had finished walking around the small exhibits and were looking around the gift shop when we overheard the two volunteer staff talking about the McDonald Observatory closing because of the continuing snowy weather and that they may be closing down the road back north to Fort Davis.  We both looked at each other with a silent "uh-oh" and high-tailed it back to the truck to drive the 20-ish miles up to the campground.

I checked my email while we still had service, and sure enough, the reservation we had for a Star Party at the Observatory Friday night had in fact been canceled. Boo. But it was an outdoor event after dark and *checks weather again* yeah, that would have been realllly chill with a possible 8-15 more inches of snow!

Once back in the campground (phew!) we took a small detour over to the Indian Lodge and Black Bear Restaurant, just to check it out. We joked about how we weren't really roughing it (we aren't y'all, we have hard walls, a roof, and HEATERS) and the staff mentioned that we were definitely doing better than those in the lodge - they have no hot water this week!

We nestled in for the rest of the afternoon, cooking a really great SunBasket meal for a late lunch, and watching a number of Mel Brooks movies (thanks 3-in-1 DVD collections!).  Not only do we not have cell reception out here, we're also not picking up a strong signal for wifi, and even the local TV channels are coming in fuzzy.  All perfectly fine, seeing that we want to be outside this weekend!  Our fingers were crossed that we’d get to do some hiking on Saturday. 

So, that’s what “8-15 inches” of snow accumulation looks like in the early morning hours. Ha! I’ll be honest, as cool as it would’ve been to see that that level of snow, I’m actually glad it didn’t happen - we had LOTS to do on Saturday!  RDB said it best: we spent the morning looking at our feet, and spent the evening staring at the stars.  

The better part of the morning we were hiking the trails in the State Park.  I took so many pictures (and this post is getting long enough as it is!) that I've written up a separate post just about that here.  Our step count for the day was well over 14k!

When the Star Party at the Observatory canceled on Friday night because of the snow, I checked online to see if there were any tickets left for Saturday night, but it was showing sold out.  RDB and I went over to the Observatory in the afternoon anyway, general admission was under $10 for the both of us, and we could at least check out the exhibits.  After typing up the adventures we had there I realized that this post is getting _even longer_, so I moved that over to a separate post here. 

Sunday morning we woke up tired. All due respect to those who get up early, stay up late, and hike mountains somewhere in between, but we could tell by midday that we really pushed on Saturday to take it all in.  Good news was that there wasn't much on the agenda for the day.

We traveled into Marfa, the seat of Presido County, and home to the phenomenon of the Marfa Lights.  We could have come down this weekend to possibly see the mystery lights but rearranging the Star Party knocked that out of possibility.  The city has a nice rest stop/viewing area created for it, and you can tell the town was buzzing with activity, likely because the unsolved mystery attracts people to the area. 

One last neat stop on the way back to the park to do our Park-n-Drive video, we had seen this random tree curved over almost creating a bridge at a roadside picnic spot each time we drove into and out of the park.  When we stopped off to get a few pictures, we were treated to an even cooler experience with the rocks jutting out and creating a sort of slot canyon hidden right there beside the road. 

Of course, I'm assuming it's the local teenagers who take advantage of the rock walls to scribe their names, hopes, and dreams. (Interesting: when our ancestors wrote on the rocks, we call it pictographs and a historical site; when our young folks do it, we call it graffiti and damaging natural sites.)

As JBY would say: #facts

Hi Mom! <3

We took our time to pack up and make the drive further south to our next destination - the Big Bend State and National Parks - for the rest of the week. In part because we were watching the weather for the wind to settle down, but also because we were pretty beat.  When you pick the most challenging of the hiking trails on the map for your first adventure, rest assured that you will pay for it later!

We fueled up in Marfa and had a nearly full tank as we started the drive of just over 100 miles from Fort Davis down to Terlingua.  Once again, be sure you have a full tank of gas before heading into the desert as there is nothing except beautiful barren vistas between the two towns. 

Three days in the beautiful Davis Mountains felt like the tip of the iceberg (seriously, it was that chilly!) in this wonderful park.  RDB and I had waited years for this weekend to happen, and now I'm wishing we had done this sooner.  I could see us coming back again in Joy for a long weekend trip, staying at the Lodge, and loving every minute of it.

We were at Davis Mountains State Park, Site #59 (and technically Site #58, too.  When booking online they both appeared to be short (we need ~60 feet for the truck and camper, unhooked) so I booked them both.  We could have made #59 alone work, but honestly? It was really nice to not have any neighbors blocking the natural view this weekend.)  It's a 30am/W site, and though there are full hook-ups in the park, they were booked way quicker than when I got online to get our reservation. No surprise there, as I'm sure the snowbirds who know of this gem in the desert are grabbing those spots as quickly as they come available. 

Tally Ho!

When one of your best buds gets a new Porche 911 and wants you to drive his 'old' Audi R8 to a few car shows over the weekend, you jump in Joy and take a quick trip to Dallas to hang out and drive, drive, drive!!

Yes, he has a Tesla Plaid, too.  It's a small fleet of beautiful exotic cars! 

We called the R8 our 'weekend rental' and I'm telling y'all, it's a beautiful car, inside and out!

Saturday we all went to the gym, then drove around for a bit, getting comfy with the cars before the Sunday car shows.  The plan was to drive up to Alma for one in the early morning, then take backroads back down towards downtown Dallas for another show outside the Scottish Rite Children's Hospital.  I'm not sure who had more fun - the little kids climbing in the cars and revving the engines, or the big kids (adults) smiling about being able to share these 'toys' with them. 

This one wasn't a toy run, but you could always check out the hospital's Amazon Wish List and send a donation that way.  We learned that every child who has surgery at Scottish Rite has a doll given to them to go thru the process with them so they're not alone; and we were kinda impressed with the world's largest leaded stained glass kaleidoscope tucked into a corner of the main lobby.

Driving around, you certainly can work up an appetite, and Ran-D's girlfriend knew of a great place to keep the car-show theme going, so we drove over to The Shop for lunch at the Derby.  I almost don't want to share any photos, because I'd love for you to be just as in awe as I was when you walk in the door.  This is not some hole in the wall dive, but a serious showroom of all kinds of cars, along with some really incredible home cookin' food!  Read my Yelp review here, and do yourself a favor - if you're within driving distance, GO! 

And the awesome part about The Shop? They're opening another one down here in Tomball next year!! Hello, Miata Club meet-ups, here we come!

As much fun as we had in the R8 (and the 911, we switched back and forth with Ran-D all weekend), we were glad to get back in our humble little MX5 and hit the road home to Houston Sunday afternoon.  It was a great mini-adventure and we'd do it again in a heartbeat!

Till next time:

Healthy Anniversary

The wonderful thing about marriage is that if you do it right, you get to have fun and hang out with your best friend every day for the rest of your life.  Nine years ago we got married on a camping trip, and after all the incredible adventures we've had, I'm certain we've done it right. 

For our anniversary weekend, RDB and I came over to another nearby favorite campground - Lake Livingston State Park.  As RDB drove us over Friday afternoon, I looked back thru our prior visits to try and remember if I had booked us in the site that was super easy to back into (site #98) or the site that was a real frustration (Site #99).  This was important, since it was still going to be raining buckets when we arrived.

Good news - we were in the 'good' site (#98).  Bad news, it was the second camping trip in a row I found myself hiding from the rain under the tongue of the camper.... only this time, we had hail, too. Ugh.

And that frustrated face also goes for the fact that we can’t put out the living room slide when it’s pouring down like this; we’re still waiting on parts to come in for warranty work on the window that leaks like a sieve in the rain.

So, we squeezed around the still-pulled-in-slide and fixed salads for dinner; I even managed to get a yoga practice in with minimal space on the living room floor. We made the best of it, waiting for a break in the rain to get things out of the truck before calling it a night and going to bed.

The storm that came thru Friday night dropped the temps by nearly twenty degrees, and we found ourselves in the low forties (just like the night before our wedding, when the temps dropped us down to 41*!) All worth it, though, to wake up in a camp ground on our anniversary and be able to get out and go for a hike.  Hello, fall, we're glad you're here!

After our hike, we unhooked the truck and leveled out the camper (with the torrential downpour happening as we got in the night before, we didn't bother fully setting up - just get the bare minimum hooked up and get out of the rain!) and then headed towards town.  We had visited downtown Livingston and got pictures of the Livingston County courthouse before, but we didn't go into any of the little shops (I think we visited on a Sunday).

So we dropped into Downtown Treasures to browse around for a few. I happened to notice a display full of anniversary items... Happy 35th, Congrats on 50, and the like.  Nothing for the odd 9th year, but we noticed a very pretty set of etched champagne flutes for a reasonable price, so, they came home with us. 

Our first toast was to the couple who previously owned the glasses, and after that, to a long and healthy lifetime of adventures together for us. 

Happened to notice the word HEAL is part of healthy. Remember that, SJB. <3

We had an early dinner of one of our favorites from the HEB Fish Market  - Atlantic Salmon Burgers, Fiesta Jalapeno style.  Along with roasted butternut squash with garlic, steamed green beans, and a really good dark-greens salad, we were happy campers.  And for dessert? A set of apples. (When you've been low-carb/keto for a while, something as simple as an apple can be a real treat!) RDB and I are focusing on our health - physical and mental - right now; it seems there's something about the time change every November that really brings my attention back to the things that matter most.

And with all the changes at work, there is no better time to focus on what matters most to me right now.

Sunday morning we (didn't sleep in - ha!) woke up to 36* outside - brrrr!!  RDB was up first, turning on the space heaters in the living room, then crawling back into bed.  I was up just a short while later to get in a yoga session (thankful that he turned those heaters on!); RDB was planning another long hike for the morning, but I ended up with a nasty blister on my heal hiking in a loose pair of boots the day before (remember the rain Friday? My sneakers were still soaked the next morning).  I still managed to join him for a portion of his hike on the boardwalk trail, before coming back to the camper to shower and get caught up on the blog. 

Listening to a new favorite artist while we made lunch, once again focusing on health-full foods (btw, it's easy to cut out the cholesterol when you forget to bring the cream cheese for your lox. Duh.) We talked thru our menu for our upcoming Big Bend National Park trip over Thanksgiving.  Yelp won't be able to help me find fun places to eat in Terlingua where there's only, like, two restaurants and one store.... But, boy, are we looking forward to that trip! 

We finished up lunch and found ourselves sitting in the camper, enjoying warm cups of tea, looking at activities for the Big Bend Trip, and delaying for every moment possible having to pack up and head back home (like we do nearly every single trip!). Yet, as much as the time change brings me the renewed focus that others seem to have at New Years, it also brings with it sunsets in the 5 o'clock hour and RDB reminded me that we'd probably want to pack up before dark.

Now, if we could just finish our cups of tea and if this blanket weren't so comfy.... hygge is healthy, too, right? ;-)

We were at Lake Livingston State Park, Pin Oak site #98 (the good one). The site is level side to side (thankfully!) and relatively easy to back into.  I was up on the roof to remove a few dead branches that had fallen on the slideouts, and pruned out a few more that would have fallen on their own eventually. It was a busy weekend with a scout troop in the loop with us, so plenty of people and activity on the trails.  And speaking of the trails, we definitely put them to good use this trip - getting in several miles on both days (go, RDB, go!).  Here's to another wonderful camping trip, another great year of marriage, and many many more of both to come!

We're All Mad Here...

Here lately, it feels as if the Universe I'm living in is another remake of Alice in Wonderland and in this version I'm having tea with the Mad Hatter:

"I am under no obligation to make sense to you," says my Mad Hatter Universe.

I don't disagree, yet this weekend, I have reason to sit here enjoying my tea with a slight cheshire cat grin of my own over the rim of my cup....

While we didn't see any characters from the beloved storybook, we did have a chance to spend Halloween weekend at Huntsville State Park - one of our favorite close-to-home parks. The weather on Friday was not being very cooperative, dumping buckets of rain in the early afternoon, but as we continued onto I-45 northbound, we could see just the tiniest bit of blue sky ahead.  And we'll take all the blue skies we can get right now - including the very sudden announcement that my Sr leader, the one who chose not to hire me to backfill a role I was already doing, who's only been in his role for just over a year, has, ahem, taken another position and will no longer be a part of our business unit. 

See what I mean? WTF-Wonderland indeed. 

It was still drizzling a bit Friday evening, but I took shelter under the tongue of our camper and enjoyed the lake view and a conversation with a dear friend I hadn't spoken to in a several days (TBH, it's felt more like a weeks!) <3 I appreciate how people are giving me space right now, all things considered, but it really makes my day to hear from friends, talk this craziness out, and imagine hilarious new playlists... 

I had found a few fun events around town for RDB and I to venture out to on Saturday, and it started with a really great lunch down in Conroe at The Red Brick Tavern on the square.  Great food, incredible service, and I can still taste the roasted garlic in my mouth hours later!  I didn't realize it when I picked an 'on the square' place for lunch that we'd actually be in the county seat of Montgomery County. Almost not even worth getting a picture of the building, because the oak trees were so overgrown and large.

But RDB and I both agreed that this courthouse wins for some of the best landscaping around the building; the waterways and fountains, big trees and multiple sculptures made it feel like Underland, for sure.

From lunch on the square, we ventured over to The Field of Flowers Farm for their Fall Festival. We had a chance to meet one of the owners, Jana, as we arrived and talked a little about how they're working to grow the place into an event space (14 weddings booked this year - if they can triple that, then her hubby can retire.) The $15/person entry fee was reasonable for most festival settings, but unfortunately - either the drizzly weather, or the fact that there just wasn't much there - it felt a bit over priced this time.  I'd imagine though, a spring festival at their flower farm, when everything is in full bloom, is probably worth every penny.  

Leaving the flower farm, driving thru the tiny town of New Waverly, we couldn't help but notice the church spire spiking above the scraggly pine trees.  A few turns off the intended path, and we found ourselves in front of St Joseph's Catholic Church.

(And I interrupt this line of thought for another WTF moment about the work stuff.  Cause, seriously, all weekend RDB and I would just randomly laugh, or say Holy Shit, or WT-actual-F? It's just. So. BONKERS.) 

After a short stop over back at the camper, we made our way to downtown Huntsville for "Scare on the Square" - an annual town-wide trick-or-treat event.

We enjoyed walking around, seeing all the kids (and some adults) in costumes.  I even met a new friend:

And wouldn't you know it? Huntsville is the county seat of Walker County.  

I happened to notice, under the second story railings that support the balcony around the building, there are decorative stars and "W"s.  The historical plaque that mentioned the five county courthouses for Walker county - including two which burned - had me think that maybe someday I should take my fascination for courthouses and turn that into a book, especially with how many courthouses, at least in Texas, had been burned at one point or another.  I totally understand the desire to burn it down somedays...

And other days, I have to keep practicing letting it all fall away.

Sunday morning we slept in (I wonder how many times I've said that on this blog?) and made our way over to the Farmhouse Cafe for lunch.  There was a bit of a wait to get a table, so we strolled over to Farmhouse Coffee and Cream for a quick coffee. Super glad we did - not only was the decaf coconut flat white yummy, but I came back over after lunch to get a few of the white chocolate truffles for dessert. (RDB had the coconut cream pie at the restaurant, and it was, once again, splendid!).  The atmosphere of this little coffee shop would totally be a place I'd want to hang out at if we lived nearby.

Back at the campsite for the afternoon, I'm working on this blogpost while texting friends (how cool is it that my Apple Mac and my phone's texts sync up?) and watching the lake outside our window. 

This morning before we left for breakfast, RDB and I both walked down to the water's edge; I turned to him and said, "Diesel would have loved this site."  He smiled softly and agreed.  I was chatting about raccoons with a.Fox just a while ago, and shared with her the first post I could remember mentioning raccoons, which happened to also be Diesel's first camping trip with us. Miss that Pumpkin. 

We'll pack up here shortly, and head back home.  Who knows what's around the corner this next week; I can only imagine how crazy it will continue to get from here. It's a mad, mad, mad, mad world. 

Couldn't have said it better myself, Chessur. 

We were at Huntsville State Park, Raven Loop, Site #14. We'd had our eyes on this one the last time we were here and really enjoyed having the lake front view - even if the lake is low and mostly green right now. We bumped into Bullet, the camp host, as we were setting up Friday afternoon.  I couldn't help but giggle that he said "Yeah, all the campsites lean towards the lake" as we put two legos on the lake side to get somewhat level before letting the camper do the rest of the work.  I'll be honest - I've literally jumped in my seat a few times this afternoon when acorns dropped out of the trees and hit the roof of the slide out. Overall though, this might be my favorite site at this park and I'm so grateful that it's close to home.